Don't Waste Your Life

      Chapter 8 talks about the idea of being in the world but not of it.  Many times people take this the wrong way and say that we should not be in the world at all (or the secular world).  We need to understand that God is not telling people to quit their secular job, just to be careful with how we act and to work with God in secular jobs.  John Piper gives many goals to strive for when you are working in a secular world.  A few of them are:

• "We can make much of God in our secular job through the fellowship that we enjoy with him throughout the day in all our work."  This means that throughout the day we should thank God continuously for everything He does for us, and to have Him there with you at all times.  He is always with you, but you need to acknowledge His prescence.
• "We make much of Christ in our secular work by the joyful, trusting, God-exalting design of our creativity and industry."  John Piper talks about how animals are very hard workers and they can do amazing things just like humans.  But the difference is animals are not working for God. But is there really a difference? Or... are we just like animals, working for ourselves to get food, clothing, and shelter? We need to have a better purpose.  We need to work for God.
• "We make much of Christ in our secular work whe it confirms and enhances the portrait of Christ's glory that people hear in the spoken Gospel."  We need to be lights in our secular work, sharing through our actions and our hard work the glory of God just as well as the Gospel.  What are we doing for Christ if we go to work just to get what needs to be done done.  We need to strive for more.  We can not be mediocre. We have to be examples.

   In conclusion, it is not wrong to have a secular job.  It is not wrong to be in the world.  It IS WRONG if we do not do anything different than the non-Christians.  We need to be examples to those around us. We need to stand out and be deliberately different.